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It's Official: Judge Brett Kavanaugh Confirmed To Supreme Court After Hellacious Nomination Battle

Matt Vespa
Matt Vespa  |  October 06, 2018 3:57 PM

Well, it’s official. Judge Brett Kavanaugh is now Associate Justice Kavanaugh. By a vote of 50-48, he skirted by in one of the most contentious confirmation battles since Clarence Thomas. It might have been worse than that. The smear campaign executed by the Left was epic. It was ugly. It was based upon a foundation of unverified accounts of sexual misconduct. It offered a horrifying glimpse into how the Left wants to pervert our justice system. They don’t want presumption of innocence or due process. They want a world where anyone can be destroyed based on mere accusations that aren’t backed up with evidence or witnesses. Any lie can be weaponized. Any part of your life can be distorted, assisted by the Democratic Party and their allies in the media. It was a well-orchestrated political hit that missed its target. It was an aggressive blitz, but the line held. The GOP, overall, didn’t cave, except for that brief period where Sen. Jeff Flake (R-AZ) sided with Democrats to delay the final vote for a week so that the FBI could conduct an investigation into these sexual misconduct claims. 

The FBI did its job and to no one’s surprise, the Left rejected the final report. They tried to delay and run out the clock. They failed. In doing so, they’ve united, infuriated, and mobilized the GOP base, especially Republican women who are boiling with anger over how unfairly Kavanaugh has been treated. Identity politics is a double-edged sword. The crazy left wing loons might be energized, but it also jacks everyone else up who…is normal as well.  

The Supreme Court nomination process of now-Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh was a national disgrace. It was fraught with chaos and appalling accusations that weren’t grounded in evidence and in some cases, reality. It was the culmination of the politicization of the judicial nomination process that began when President Ronald Reagan nominated Robert Bork. That’s not to say this is a bad thing. It’s not good either. It’s just the natural progression of politics. The Left wants their judges and we want ours. This was inevitable. There were observations that the Left was sort of lackluster in their anti-Kavanaugh operations. That ended when Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s office dropped a sexual misconduct bombshell at the last minute, which engulfed the Hill in pandemonium. A woman, Christine Blasey Ford, alleges that Kavanaugh tried to rape her at a high school party. There is no evidence. There are no corroborating witnesses. 

Two more women, Deborah Ramirez and Julie Swetnick, also came forward. Their accusations also lacked evidence and witnesses, with Swetnick’s claim being more or less dismissed by anyone with cognitive function due to its outrageousness. She claims that Kavanaugh was part of a gang rape ring in high school. The New York Times refused to run stories on both these women’s claims because they couldn’t confirm anything. It was an elaborate and devastating character assassination attempt. It almost worked. The pressure was mounting on the wild cards—Sens. Lisa Murkowski (R-AK), Flake (R-AZ), Joe Manchin (D-WV), and Susan Collins (R-ME). Ultimately, Flake, Collins, and Manchin voted yes.  Murkowski is against, but in order to keep Sen. Steve Daines (R-MT) from leaving his daughter’s wedding in Montana, she will be voting “present.” She sided with Democrats in the cloture motion yesterday.

So, it might have been a hellacious process. The scars inflicted upon Kavanaugh might never fully heal, but we won. And hopefully those wounds can be sewn up when he continues to serve with distinction on the bench.  Conservatives have a solid majority on the Court. It’s a huge generational win for the movement. And if Trump wins a second term, no doubt there will be other vacancies, as the liberal wing is increasingly getting older. 

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Welcome to the Court, Associate Justice Brett Kavanaugh. You deserve to be there.  

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UPDATE: Kavanaugh to be sworn in later today (via AP):

Brett Kavanaugh will soon don his robes as a justice. The Supreme Court says he will be sworn in later Saturday.

In a statement, the court says Chief Justice John Roberts will administer the Constitutional Oath and retired Associate Justice Anthony M. Kennedy will administer the Judicial Oath in a private ceremony at the Supreme Court. Both oaths will be administered so Kavanaugh can participate in the work of the court immediately.

A formal investiture ceremony will take place at a special sitting of the court at a later date.

UPDATE II: He's sworn in, folks

UPDATE III: From Judicial Crisis Network's Carrie Severino:

Congratulations to Judge Kavanaugh, and deep appreciation for all the Senators who supported him. Senate Majority Leader McConnell and Chairman Grassley deserve to be commended for their outstanding leadership. Judge Kavanaugh has been tested by fire and proved himself to be everything and more than we had expected. He will be another great justice